Kent Jones on Directing Willem Dafoe in 'Late Fame'
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- Kent Jones directs 'Late Fame,' opening August 7 and adapted by Samy Burch from Arthur Schnitzler's novella about a forgotten post-office poet (Ed Saxberger) rediscovered by aspiring writers.
- Willem Dafoe stars as Ed Saxberger; Jones told IndieWire Dafoe was 'practically the only actor that would make sense' after the two bonded over 1970s–80s New York.
- Jones chose Burch's warmer script over Schnitzler's more cynical source material, saying he wanted viewers to 'feel their ridiculousness, but at the same time see the beauty of the delusion.'
- Jones shot 'Late Fame' handheld with multiple cameras, refusing to dictate to actors — quoting Scorsese on staying open to 'new values that come up as you're working.'
- Two unnamed actors dropped out and were replaced during production; Jones called both replacements 'a lucky break,' arguing that actors are never interchangeable parts.
- Jones made his fiction debut with 'Diane' (starring Mary Kay Place) after documentaries on Elia Kazan, Val Lewton, and Alfred Hitchcock, while working for Martin Scorsese for 35 years and serving as New York Film Festival director.
Why it matters: Jones frames 'Late Fame' as a direct rebuttal to the idea that actors are interchangeable — a stance that matters because two cast changes during production didn't derail the film; in his telling, those replacements actually improved it. The film also softens Schnitzler's original cynicism into warm humor, giving Dafoe what Jones calls a role that would be 'unthinkable' in anyone else's hands.
